Chrome, hero that it is, will start automatically muting autoplay videos
Google's war on autoplaying videos in Chrome continues.
Chrome 64, released in December, gave users the ability to mute annoying autoplay videos on an entire site, not just one page. Chrome 66 is the next step.
Now, Chrome will more aggressively block autoplaying videos with sound. Going forward, Chrome won't allow a video to autoplay unless it's muted or never had sound in the first place. There are exceptions, however. From Google's notes to developers:
Autoplay is now allowed only when either the media won't play sound, after the user clicks or taps on the site, or (on desktop) if the user has previously shown an interest in media on the site.
Videos can also autoplay if you've added the site to the home screen of an Android phone, reports 9to5Google.
If you're worried about autoplay videos sucking up data and power, or just hate the noise, you can download Chrome 66 now. But even if you don't, it should be coming to all Chrome users soon.
The beta has a couple other boring but important tricks up its sleeve. Google is replacing Android's "Chrome Home" bottom bar with a new "Chrome Home Duplex" featuring a sliding toolbar that shows recent tabs and suggests new tabs. Developers can now employ auto-capitalization on any editable text field on their sites. And the new Decoding Info API will help websites better tailor media streaming resolution to capabilities of the device that's accessing them.
None of this is revolutionary, but it all adds up to a better, smoother browsing experience for you.
Topics Cybersecurity
Monica wrote for Mashable's Tech section with a focus on retail, internet of things, and the intersections of technology and social justice. She holds a degree in creative writing from Brown University, and has previously written for Dow Jones Media, the New York Post, Yahoo Finance, and others. In her free time, she can be found attempting to cook Asian food, buying board games, and looking for new hobbies.
